Dirigible aircraft



fi m- :5 SR

HPMM 0R 1,726,062

Aug. 27, 1929. c. c. GILMAN DIRIGIBLE AIRCRAFT Filed Oct. 16, 1928 INVENTOR C larente' C G/lman r 244. IAERONAUTICS Patented Aug. 27, 1929.

UNITE STATES CLARENCE C. GILMAN, OF ALHAMBRA, CALIFORNIA.

DIRIGIBLE AIRCRAFT.

Application filed October 16, 1928.

In this specification, and the accompanying drawings, I shall describe and show a preferred form of my invention and specifically mention certain of its more important objects. I do not limit myself to the forms disclosed, since various changes and adaptations may be made therein, without departing from the essence of my invention as hereinafter claimed; and objects and advantages, other than those specifically mentioned, are included within its scope.

My invention relates to aircraft and more particularly to a combination of certain characteristics of the dirigible type, having incorporated therein the lighter than air features, and embodies also an aeroplane con- I struction which possesses features unincorporated in the dirigible type.

Therefore the paramount object of this invention is to make it possible to bring together from these two types of aircraft men tioned in the preceding paragraph certain features of established value, thus to produce a combination of mechanical features whereby new results of material advantage in advancing the art of aerial navigation are secured.

One of the advantages gained by this invention is extensive adjustment of the wings combined with eflicient, dependable manual control thereof, thus aiding greatly in the performance of intricate maneuvering of the craft.

Another advantage gained is the safeguarding of the pivotal supports of the wings from strain through the wide range of adjustment of which said wings are capable about their longitudinal axes, notwithstanding the additional weight carried by said wings owing to certain motor elements being attached to them.

Still another object of the invention is to aid in causing the craft to descend by providing improved means for directing the pro pellers downwardly in order that they may be utilized to bring the craft to the earth in opposition to the bouyant action "of the gas stored therein. This improved feature renders possible a substantial reduction in the numb-er of the crew employed at the landing field for the purpose of efiecting safe landings of ships of this class. The necessity for a special balancing weight is also eliminated by the propeller adjustment devices hereinafter described.

Incase of obstacles quickly appearing in Serial No. 312,888.

the path of the flight a quicker ascent may be made to avoid them by the use of the improved wing and propeller adjusting elements which have been alluded to. This becomes of double importance when such obstacles can only be seen a short distance ahead owing to fogs, darkness or other things obscuring the view, and also in case of aerial combat during war.

These and other objects of my invention will become apparent when viewed in the light of a disclosure following taken in conjunction with the drawings wherein like refcrence characters prevail throughout the sevoral views, and in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of my improved aircraft.

Figure 2 is a section taken on line 2-4. of Figure 5.

Figure 3 is a section taken on line 3-3 of Figure 5 showing the wing structure tilted through an angle of ninety degrees, or vertically upward.

Figure I is a section taken on line H of Figure 5.

Figure 5 is a side elevation thereof having certain outer portions removed to show the interior arrangement.

Figure 6 is a view of a fragmentary portion illustrating one arrangement by which the control of the wings may be governed and Figure 7 is a section of another fragmentary portion to illustrate the means for adjusting the inclination of the wings.

In fulfilling the objects of my invention I propose features included in the principle of construction wherein I employ the use of an eloigated cylindrical body having ogival en s.

Laterally athwart the craft and in a transverse plane with relation to the longitudinal axis thereof at positions intermediate its ends I mount and extend therethrough and project an appreciable distance beyond the sides thereof a pair of wings, said wings being adjustable about their longitudinal axes and carrying aeroplane motors.

Within the dirigible body it is proposed to provide a sufiicient amount of gas to buoyantly support the entire weight of the cargo as well as the dead load of the structure itself. Thus when a plurality of high speed aeroplane motors are mounted in juxtaposition with the wings as illustrated in the drawings, it is possible to produce a transport adapted for long trips, having greater speed and substantially constructed for intricate maneuvering in storms wherein the lives of the occupants are less imperiled when the appliance is constructed according to the principles of this construction.

Through the particular arrangement for securing adjustability of the wings together with their engines, it is possible to take oif and land in a vertical fashion thus approaching the feature of the helicopter, and this adjustment permits of easier steering in the air streams, and quicker regaining of poise after displacement by the elements.

The further fulfillment of the objects of my invention is attained in the manner illustrated in the accompanying drawings, the embodiment of which selected for illustrative purposes comprises a shell 8 of cylindrical cross-section having a forward ogival end 9 and a rear ogival end 10. This body or fuselage is quite pronounced in its length and is extremely streamline thereby being better enabled to decrease to a minimum air resistance during flight.

Extending transversely through the body portion intermediate its ends are wings 11 and 12 to the undersides of which are rigidly fastened aerial motors 13, 14, and 15, 16 respectively. Said wings are provided with a honeycombed construction it for the storage of gas or other hydrocarbons. Moreover, their construction is rigid and durable.

Each of said wings is tiltably mounted. The construction setting forth the principles involved is best shown in Figure 6. In this view it will be seen that there is a pair of complementary trunnion brackets 17 and 18 for the forward wing, and brackets 19 and 20 for the rear wing. For the trunnion bracket 17 is provided a sprocket 21 integral therewith, and a similar construction 22 is provided in conjunction with the trunnion bracket 20 on the rear wing. For each of said sprockets are provided sprocket chains 23 and 24 respectively which are extended to a point within the operators room 25 shown in Figure 5, and there mounted upon sprockets 26 and 27. In this compartment the wings are manually adjusted by control levers 28 and 29. These control levers will be best seen by again referring to Figure 6, and their detailed construction by referring to Figure 7.

Said levers 28 and 29 are each provided with a grip portion 30 and recessed therethrough is a thumb pin 31 pivotally connected to a locking lever 32. Said locking lever is rockingly mounted upon a hinge pin 33 on the back side of the levers 28 and 29 by means of a bracket 34. Said locking levers are each provided with a locking finger 35 to engage the teeth of the sprockets 26 and 27, against the opposition of spring 36 which is seated in a recess 37 in the lever arm 28 or 29. Said sprockets 26 and 27 are integral with sprocket brackets 38 and 39, said brackets being fastened to the walls of the fuselage body 8 in any convenient manner. The levers 28 and 29 are secured to the sprockets 26 and 27 and their sprocket brackets 38 and 39 by means of pin 40 keyed therewithin by means of a key pin 41.

The wall of the fuselage is provided with a pair of upstanding front brackets 42 and 43. Said bracket 43 is pivotally secured to the trunnion bracket 18 by means of a pin 44. Bracket 43 is provided with a shoulder 45 and trunnion bracket 18 is provided with a corresponding shoulder 46. Said shoulders respectively cooperate with the ends of brackets 43 and 18 to relieve pin 44 from excessive shearing strain in the various positions of the wing.

The weight relieving feature which has just been described is the same for both the wings with this exception that the pin 48 of the operating connection for the rear wing is integral with the sprocket bracket 49 of the sprocket wheel 22. The operating construction of the forward wing 11 is identical with that just described in connection with the rear wing 12. By the construction just recited a dependable and eflicient means is provided for adjusting to various inclinations the wings of the ship, even though saidwings have to bear the added weight of the motors mounted upon them. As a result of being able to manipulate these wings at various inclinations the pilot of the ship is better enabled to intricately maneuver his aircraft under adverse conditions.

In Figure 5 are shown the cylindrical apertures or port holes 50 and 51 which are necessarily provided in order that the wings may be circumferentially adjusted. Circular shields or cover plates 52 and 53 are carried by the wings to close said apertures at each side of the ship in order to keep the interior of the fuselage from being damaged by the elements.

In Figures 2 and 5 a plurality of gas bags 54 are shown, it being understood that these bags are located through the ship in order to provide the needed buoyancy. Space is reserved for passengers and freight as well as accommodations for the personnel of the crew, and also room for instruments, etc.

Entrance to the ship is had through door 55. The interior framework of the ship is rigidly constructed as shown in Figure 5 where a portion thereof is removed, and in Figure 2 where it is shown in cross-section and in Figure 4 where a section of the shell is shown reinforced by wire cables. These features separately considered form no part of the invention but are mentioned to aid in setting forth the most advantageous method of constructing and using the invention.

For horizontal steering I provide rudders 244.'AERONAUT|CS 56 and 57 and vertical steering rudders 58 and 59. Said rudders are positioned as best shown in Figures 1 and 5 and secured to the usual stabilizing elements.

I claim:

1. In an aircraft, a body portion, a Wing having a propelling device attached thereto, and means for adjusting the position of said Wing about its axis with respect to said body portion, said means comprising cooperating brackets carried by said Wing and body, and pivot pins uniting said brackets, said brackets having bearing portions which cooperate to relieve said pivot pins of shearing strain.

2. In an aircraft, a body portion, a Wing having a propelling device attached thereto, and means for adjusting the position of said Wing with respect to said body, sald means comprising cooperating brackets carried by said Wing and body portion and pivot pins uniting said brackets, one of said brackets having a bearing shoulder which cooperates With a bearing surface on the end of the other. bracket to relieve said pivot pins of shearing strain.

3. A dirigible aircraft comprising an elongated cylindrical body having port holes in the sides thereof, a plurality of Wings extending continuously through said body and therebeyond for supporting and stabilizing said body, engines mounted on said Wings, trunnions on said Wings, a support for pivotally mounting said wings by means of said trunnions, and shields on said Wings for closing said port holes.

4. A dirigible body adapted to contain a buoyant gas and having a plurality of Wings extending through said body intermediate its length, propellers mounted on said Wings and disposed on opposite sides of said body in a normally fixed position With relation thereto for rotation around their pivotal axes, drive means for said propellers, trunnions on said Wings, supporting means on Which said trunnions are pivotally mounted With their axes extending transversely of said body, releasable latching means for holding said wings in normal and operated positions, said releasable means being manually operable to independently vary the angle of incident of said Wings.

CLARENCE CLEPPER GILMAN. 

